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David Morris motors past Peter Ebdon at UK Championship

David Morris delighted his supporters with a win over veteran Peter Ebdon

Ireland’s David Morris claimed his second notable victory of the week at the UK Championship with a devastating display against former world champion Peter Ebdon.

The Kilkenny cueman hammered former world champion Peter Ebdon 6-1 at York’s Barbican Centre after opening his campaign with a win against Jamie Cope.

Morris led 2-0 after breaks of 72 and 46 and though Ebdon pulled a frame back, the underdog extended his lead either side of the interval.

Having opened up a 5-1 lead, Morris - who almost did not play on the tour this year, only making a late decision to enter qualifying school last year - made a 42 break in frame seven and then cleared coolly to triumph.

"I managed to steal a few frames when he looked certain to win them so they turned the match in my favour, said Morris.

"He is a legend of the game and a different sort of player to almost everyone on tour, so it was a good test for me.”

Meanwhile, Fergal O'Brien also progressed courtesy of a 6-3 win over a disgusted Mark King.

Speaking after the loss in the secondary 'sports hall' venue, the Braintree man said:

"They talk about 'it's a level playing field'. What a load of crap" - Mark King

"To be stuck in that back room, right by where the BBC are working - I was stepping on wires. It's not good enough.

"As long as Ronnie [O'Sullivan's] okay, Neil [Robertson's] okay, they don't care. We all pay the same entry fee. It's disgraceful."

"They talk about 'it's a level playing field'. What a load of crap

O'Sullivan breezed into the second round with a straightforward 6-0 win over Rhys Clark.

The Rocket was never tested and spent much of the match pursuing a 147 break as his amateur opponent failed to cope with the occasion.

Breaks of 82 in frame two and 71 in the next, the latter set up by a stunning brown off the opening red, put O'Sullivan in command at 3-0.

He took blacks with his first six reds in frame four, before losing position and missing the pink, but a second visit of 54 wrapped up the frame.

Another maximum attempt in the next stalled when he missed a highly ambitious sixth red, but there was no stopping him from picking up the two remaining frames he needed.

World number three Ding Junhui, looking to continue his amazing run of form, was made to work for a 6-3 win over amateur Antony Parsons.

Ding has won the last three ranking events, the Shanghai Masters, the Indian Open and the International Championship in China, and surged into a 3-0 lead as the Teesside warehouse worker took time to settle.

Parsons cut the deficit to a single frame but a 128 break put Ding back on course and, though Parsons showed his ability with a 54 in frame eight, the Chinese player finished the job.

World Championship finalist Barry Hawkins had to dig deep to get past China's Zhang Anda.

A hard-fought match eventually finished 6-3 in favour of the world number eight - but not before he had trailed three times, Zhang making breaks of 72 and 69 along the way.

Hawkins edged ahead for the first time at 4-3 and then closed out the match with breaks of 59 and 71.

Ali Carter, by contrast, stormed past Jimmy Robertson 6-0 and has dropped only one frame in his first two matches.

Carter made a 71 break in frame one and further half-centuries in the next two as he opened up a 4-0 lead.

He was not as fluent after the break but had little trouble in wrapping up victory at the first possible opportunity.

Scotland's Graeme Dott, edged past Nigel Bond 6-5 in the last of the early games to finish.

Dott opened with a century and led 2-0, but Bond fought back and the players traded blows until finally Dott clinched victory with a 52 break in the decider.

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